{"id":1281,"date":"2012-06-02T12:35:44","date_gmt":"2012-06-02T17:35:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/equestrianinfluence.com\/horsehappenings\/?p=1281"},"modified":"2020-01-14T12:26:11","modified_gmt":"2020-01-14T17:26:11","slug":"ill-have-another-to-school-sunday-morning-in-paddock-before-gallop","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/equestrianinfluence.com\/horsehappenings\/ill-have-another-to-school-sunday-morning-in-paddock-before-gallop\/","title":{"rendered":"I\u2019ll Have Another to school Sunday morning in paddock before gallop"},"content":{"rendered":"

BELMONT<\/span> , N.Y. \u2013 First on the track at 8:30 a.m. during the special time slot set aside for Belmont Stakes contenders, Triple Crown hopeful I\u2019ll Have Another <\/strong>had an easy gallop around the dogs over a sloppy, sealed Belmont Park oval Saturday morning.
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Cones were set eight feet from the rail for the training session, which saw a number of Belmont hopefuls jogging and galloping in preparation for the 1 \u00bd-mile \u201cTest of the Champion\u201d on Saturday, June 9.
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As has been his routine, I\u2019ll Have Another was accompanied to the track by his stable pony, Lava Man, with whom he jogged to the backstretch before breaking off for a one-mile gallop through the mud under exercise rider Jonny Garcia.
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In his only start over an off-track, I\u2019ll Have Another finished sixth in the Three Chimneys Hopeful at Saratoga Race Course, but trainer Doug O\u2019Neill did not think the going contributed to that loss. \u00a0<\/span>
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\u201cHe had a lot of trouble in the Hopeful and came out of it with sore shins,\u201d said O\u2019Neill, who was sporting a New York Mets baseball cap in honor of Johan Santana\u2019s historic no-hitter Friday night. \u201cDuring this whole Triple Crown run, he\u2019s trained over a lot of sloppy tracks and he gets over it really well. I don\u2019t think track surface will be an issue.\u201d
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O\u2019Neill said the colt will walk through the Belmont Park paddock and school Sunday morning prior to his gallop, instead of heading directly from his barn to the track.
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As he prepares to move I\u2019ll Have Another into a security barn that will house all the Belmont Stakes contenders beginning at noon on Wednesday, the trainer remained upbeat and positive as he and his team focus on the task at hand.
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\u201cWith a horse like I\u2019ll Have Another \u2026 you\u2019re under a really strong microscope,\u201d he said. \u201cI think it\u2019s all just trying to show the public we care for the horses and that when you put your hard-earned money and you bet on one of the horses you can know they\u2019re all clean and pure and ready to go.\u201d
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O\u2019Neill said that I\u2019ll Have Another\u2019s jockey, Mario Gutierrez, is scheduled to arrive in New York Monday evening, and that the 25-year-old rider will have a number of mounts at Belmont next week. Among those is the O\u2019Neill-trained Boxeur des Rues<\/strong>, whom the trainer is pointing to the 1 \u00bd-mile Brooklyn Handicap on Friday, June 8 after apparently resolving a foot bruise earlier this week.
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\u201cThe race starts at the spot the Belmont does, and I think it will be a great help to Mario to get that under his belt,\u201d said O\u2019Neill. \u201cIf the horse is not right, he won\u2019t run, but as of this morning, so far so good.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n